Mt Somers and Montalto boil water notice still in place

Residents on the Mt Somers and
Montalto water schemes are being advised to continue boiling their water
through the weekend until test results can confirm that the water is safe to
consume as normal.

Ashburton District Council has
detected E.Coli in the Montalto supply this week, while the Mt Somers scheme
still has high levels of turbidity.

Council Assets Manager Andrew Guthrie
says E.Coli tests must come back clear for three days in order for the Montalto
boil water notice to be lifted.

“We are awaiting today’s test results
for Montalto to confirm whether E.Coli has been detected again or whether there
is a clear result. We are also continuing to monitor the Mt Somers water,
which still has high levels of turbidity – or cloudiness present.

“The notices will remain in place
until we are satisfied the water is safe to consume as normal. Our number one
priority is the community’s health and wellbeing.”

A precautionary boil water notice for
the two schemes was issued on Monday 9 October when monitoring equipment at the
treatment facilities detected high levels of turbidity. Whilst the treatment
equipment is still working correctly, high turbidity levels lower the
effectiveness of the equipment to treat the water properly.

It is believed the heavy rainfall
last weekend caused the turbidity levels to rise.

“We will provide an update on the two
water schemes on Monday, and until then, the water should be boiled for three
minutes before consumption, for use in food preparation or for hygiene
purposes,” Mr Guthrie says.